Gas Leak
<Bt>Around 1:15 p.m., Monday, Nov. 26, Loudoun County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Management received a 911 call for a gas leak in the 43300 Block of Livery Square in Ashburn. Fire and rescue personnel from Ashburn, Moorefield, Sterling and Arcola responded to the scene. Upon arrival, crews discovered that a construction company working in the area had ruptured a two-inch gas line in the middle of the townhouse community.
Crews secured the area. Washington Gas arrived on the scene and repaired the gas line while fire-rescue personnel stood by ensuring that the scene was safe. Gas service was temporarily shut off as Washington Gas worked to repair the gas line and restore service to the 43 affected townhouses.
Three occupied townhomes were temporarily evacuated as a safety precaution.
<sh>Townhouse Fire
<bt>The Loudoun County Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating the cause of a fire that occurred Sunday, Nov. 25, in a Lansdowne townhouse. The fire, located at 43752 Lees Mill Square, was reported at approximately 10:15 a.m. and resulted in approximately $60,000 in damage.
The 9-1-1 caller reported fire visible from an upstairs bedroom. Emergency response units from Ashburn, Leesburg, Moorefield and Sterling arrived on the scene and found a fire in a third story bedroom. No one was home at the time of the fire, which was quickly extinguished and confined to the bedroom area of the home. There were no reported injuries.
<sh>Vacant Building Fire
<bt>A fire destroyed a vacant house located at 22870 Dominion Lane in the Sterling area Friday, Nov. 23. The fire is being investigated by the Loudoun County Fire Marshal’s Office. Damage is estimated at $50,000. Units from Sterling, Fairfax County and Dulles Airport were on the scene for approximately two hours. There were no injuries reported during the 2 a.m. call.
<sh>Federal Reimbursement
<bt>The U.S. Department of Justice announces the award of $163,002 to Loudoun County to reimburse some of the costs of incarcerating undocumented criminal aliens who have committed serious crimes in the United States.
The monies come from the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP) funds. SCAAP provides federal payments to states and localities that incurred correctional officer salary costs for incarcerating undocumented criminal aliens with at least one felony or two misdemeanor convictions for violations of state or local law, and incarcerated for at least four consecutive days during the reporting period.
The Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office was one of only 809 — out of 3,140 — eligible local entities across the U.S. that successfully applied for federal programs to help supplement this local tax burden. The Sheriff’s Office was assisted by Justice Benefits Inc. (JBI), a public sector consulting firm located in Dallas, Texas, who conducted a program of researching and applying for little known federal programs.
<sh>New Bus Service
<bt>Virginia Regional Transit (VRT), in partnership with the Loudoun County Office of Transportation Services, has released a new and updated Bus Services and Schedules Guide. The guide provides maps and schedules for all the local fixed route bus service provided by Virginia Regional Transit in Loudoun County. It also provides general information and a route map of LC Transit, the commuter bus that travels from Loudoun to Metrorail and destinations within
the Washington region. There are also helpful descriptions, phone numbers and Web sites for other transit providers in Loudoun and the region.
Residents may pick up a copy of this new transit booklet at
local libraries and the Loudoun County Government Center, 1 Harrison St., S.E. in Leesburg. Or call the Office of Transportation Services at 703-771-5665 or VRT at 540-338-1610 to request a copy be mailed.